Written questions by Maguire.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support survivors of sexual assault.

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What steps she is taking to ensure that the National Cancer Plan receives adequate long-term funding.

The National Cancer Plan, published in February 2026, aims to get more from the resources already in the system, improving productivity and modernising services to deliver better outcomes for patients.Through the plan, the Department has announced some targeted new commitments. This includes a £10 million fund to support children and young people with cancer and their families with travel costs, which is reprioritised funding, as well as £200 million of ring-fenced funding for Cancer Alliances in 2026/27, as part of system development funding.

Communities and Local Government, what conversations he has had with the Minister for Women and Equalities regarding improving local safety for women and girls, especially at night.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What steps she is taking with the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology to combat misinformation and disinformation online after sexual assaults.

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation.

If he will make it his policy to confirm governance arrangements and progress reports for the National Cancer Plan to Parliament.

The National Cancer Plan, published on the 4 February 2026, sets out several commitments and ambitions, to be delivered within the next 10 years. The role of the reformed National Cancer Board will be to support and monitor the delivery of the commitments and ambitions and to provide regular updates to ministers. The board will be co-chaired by the Director General for Planned Care in the Department and an independent representative. It will meet once a co-chair is appointed.Across the life of the plan, ministers will publish an annual summary of progress, along with a more in-depth report after three years to assess where the plan may need updating and refreshing. The annual summary will be available publicly and ministers would welcome the opportunity to update the House when it is published.

What his planned timeline is for (a) implementing and (b) making available the cancer manuals.

The Department and NHS England will establish clear quality standards for cancer delivery through cancer manuals, published by tumour type. Quality standards will incorporate clinical-effectiveness, safety, and experience of care, in line with the definition of quality set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The manuals will provide a consistent framework against which clinicians, trust boards, and commissioners can assess the quality of their service.Over time, cancer manuals will be transformed into a continuous learning platform, informed by real-time feedback from patients and artificial intelligence supported learning. Publication will begin in 2027.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made on the merits of introducing legislation which would mandate social media platforms to share data from times of public disorder crises.

While social media can play an important role in society, it is unacceptable that people use it to threaten our communities. Government engages with local authorities to monitor issues affecting cohesion, including misinformation and disinformation. Under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom has broad information-gathering powers and has consulted on a new crisis measure which includes an expectation on platforms to conduct post-crisis analyses to improve transparency. In Protecting What Matters – the government’s plan to improve social cohesion – we further committed to reviewing the Online Safety Act’s crisis powers to ensure they are fit for purpose and adequately tackling issues including mis- and disinformation.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department is taking diplomatic or humanitarian steps support female Christian converts globally.

The UK continues to champion Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all, and we continue to recognise the issue of persecution of Christians globally on account of their faith, alongside the persecution of other groups. We also recognise that women and girls may face heightened and overlapping risks of persecution or violence where religious discrimination intersects with gender-based inequality, including in contexts where women's rights and freedoms are systematically restricted, such as Afghanistan.Last July, the UK Special Envoy for FoRB, David Smith MP, publicly set out the Government's approach to FoRB, providing a framework for UK engagement. Within this framework, we identified Afghanistan as one of ten focus countries for work on the issue. As part of this strategy, the UK continues to highlight FoRB violations on the international stage, through our position at the UN, G7, and as an active member of the Article 18 Alliance.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the absence of a specific criteria to determine which providers were included in the Neighbourhood Health Framework on the equality of local care provisions.

The Neighbourhood Health Framework is designed to empower local leaders to develop and scale neighbourhood health, and to provide clarity and consistency to support joined-up working between integrated care boards (ICBs) and local authorities.The framework outlines the national minimum aims and objectives of Neighbourhood Health Services and maps the process systems should go through to establish local metrics and plans. The framework references how general practice, primary care, pharmacy, mental health provider, civil society partner, and social and community health services can work together to shift care from hospitals to communities. This is not an exhaustive list of all possible providers of neighbourhood health services but illustrates the types of providers with whom we are actively working. It is not prescriptive.No specific criteria were used to determine the providers that were included in the framework. The framework does not prevent other providers from being part of neighbourhood health services.It is important that reforms are locally led, as ICBs and local authorities are best placed to design services that make sense for their local populations. However, there are actions that work everywhere, so the framework sets out a minimum set of interventions for all ICBs to deliver over the next three years. This will provide the building blocks of an effective, joined-up Neighbourhood Health Service.We recognise that delivering a Neighbourhood Health Service will be an incremental process, as both local understanding develops and national reforms progress. We will regularly update the Neighbourhood Health Framework to reflect learning from communities.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussion she has had with her Afghan counterparts regarding the displacement of Afghan Christian women.

The UK continues to champion Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all, and we continue to recognise the issue of persecution of Christians globally on account of their faith, alongside the persecution of other groups. We also recognise that women and girls may face heightened and overlapping risks of persecution or violence where religious discrimination intersects with gender-based inequality, including in contexts where women's rights and freedoms are systematically restricted, such as Afghanistan.Last July, the UK Special Envoy for FoRB, David Smith MP, publicly set out the Government's approach to FoRB, providing a framework for UK engagement. Within this framework, we identified Afghanistan as one of ten focus countries for work on the issue. As part of this strategy, the UK continues to highlight FoRB violations on the international stage, through our position at the UN, G7, and as an active member of the Article 18 Alliance.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of developing a specific criteria to determine which providers are included in the Neighbourhood Health Framework.

The Neighbourhood Health Framework is designed to empower local leaders to develop and scale neighbourhood health, and to provide clarity and consistency to support joined-up working between integrated care boards (ICBs) and local authorities.The framework outlines the national minimum aims and objectives of Neighbourhood Health Services and maps the process systems should go through to establish local metrics and plans. The framework references how general practice, primary care, pharmacy, mental health provider, civil society partner, and social and community health services can work together to shift care from hospitals to communities. This is not an exhaustive list of all possible providers of neighbourhood health services but illustrates the types of providers with whom we are actively working. It is not prescriptive.No specific criteria were used to determine the providers that were included in the framework. The framework does not prevent other providers from being part of neighbourhood health services.It is important that reforms are locally led, as ICBs and local authorities are best placed to design services that make sense for their local populations. However, there are actions that work everywhere, so the framework sets out a minimum set of interventions for all ICBs to deliver over the next three years. This will provide the building blocks of an effective, joined-up Neighbourhood Health Service.We recognise that delivering a Neighbourhood Health Service will be an incremental process, as both local understanding develops and national reforms progress. We will regularly update the Neighbourhood Health Framework to reflect learning from communities.

What support her Department has given to local police officers in light of protests in Surrey.

This Government is committed to protecting the right to peaceful protest, while ensuring public order legislation balances freedom of expression with protecting the public from serious disruption or harm. Under the Public Order Act 1986 the police have powers to manage protests, and it is for individual forces to determine the most appropriate approach based on the specific context.The Home Office engaged with Surrey Police and the National Police Coordination Centre in relation to recent protest activity. The National Police Coordination Centre has recently received additional funding to improve its capabilities, including in relation to intelligence gathering and mobilisation to ensure it can properly support police forces in managing public order risks.The Government is committed to supporting the mental and physical wellbeing of police officers, including during periods of heightened operational demands such as protests. We work closely with policing partners to ensure officers are properly supported. This includes continued funding for the National Police Wellbeing Service, which provides evidence-based guidance, advice, tools and resources to forces, supporting Chief Constables in their duty to safeguard the wellbeing of their workforce.

What progress his Department has made on implementing the National Cancer Plan.

The National Cancer Plan was published in February 2026. The Department has taken steps to implement the plan’s commitments and ambitions to be delivered within the next ten years. While immediate focus is on those to be delivered in 2026, all commitments are being considered by the various delivery partners involved.A reformed National Cancer Board, jointly chaired by the Department and an independent representative, will track progress and provide regular updates to ministers.Across the life of the plan, ministers will publish an annual summary of progress, along with a more in-depth report after three years to assess where the plan may need updating and refreshing.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of attacks on female Christian converts in Central Asia.

The UK continues to champion Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all, and we continue to recognise the issue of persecution of Christians globally on account of their faith, alongside the persecution of other groups. We also recognise that women and girls may face heightened and overlapping risks of persecution or violence where religious discrimination intersects with gender-based inequality, including in contexts where women's rights and freedoms are systematically restricted, such as Afghanistan.Last July, the UK Special Envoy for FoRB, David Smith MP, publicly set out the Government's approach to FoRB, providing a framework for UK engagement. Within this framework, we identified Afghanistan as one of ten focus countries for work on the issue. As part of this strategy, the UK continues to highlight FoRB violations on the international stage, through our position at the UN, G7, and as an active member of the Article 18 Alliance.

If she will publish the number of specialist trained police officers in Surrey to support victims of sexual assault.

The College of Policing is responsible for recording the number of specialists trained officers in each police force, such as those with specialist training in responding to sexual offences.The Home Secretary has instructed all police forces in England and Wales, including Surrey, to implement a specialist rape and sexual offences team by 2029. These measures will mean that by the end of this Parliament, victims and their supporters can be confident that, wherever they live police forces have the specialist skills, knowledge and capability to necessary to bring offenders to justice.More broadly, we have committed to strengthen training on violence against women and girls for policing and are working closely with the new National Centre for VAWG and Public Protection to delivery this.

Communities and Local Government, what support his Department is giving to local authorities to ensure correct and working CCTV is deployed in their area.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What steps he is taking to help protect (a) resources and (b) infrastructure for the delivery of the National Cancer Plan in the context of the NHSE and DHSC merger.

The Government has protected specialist cancer leadership, confirmed Cancer Alliances as the main delivery partners, and aligned national resources and infrastructure within a single system. Clear accountability, safeguarded workforce capacity, and shared digital and delivery infrastructure ensure the plan will continue to be implemented consistently across England during organisational change.Progress against commitments will be monitored through a reformed National Cancer Board, jointly overseeing delivery and providing regular updates to ministers to ensure momentum is maintained during and after the merger.We will work to ensure a smooth transition during the merger of NHS England and the Department, so that the public continues to have access to high-quality cancer care.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of misinformation and disinformation online on local communities.

While social media can play an important role in society, it is unacceptable that people use it to threaten our communities. Government engages with local authorities to monitor issues affecting cohesion, including misinformation and disinformation. Under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom has broad information-gathering powers and has consulted on a new crisis measure which includes an expectation on platforms to conduct post-crisis analyses to improve transparency. In Protecting What Matters – the government’s plan to improve social cohesion – we further committed to reviewing the Online Safety Act’s crisis powers to ensure they are fit for purpose and adequately tackling issues including mis- and disinformation.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to tackle the potential impact of Bot Farms on online misinformation.

The Online Safety Act addresses illegal mis- and disinformation regardless of whether it is generated or amplified by AI or automated accounts. In-scope services are required to fulfil their obligations under the Act and Ofcom has strong enforcement powers where they fail to comply. We are taking action across government to ensure a coherent, effective response to misinformation online and its impact on the UK, including through the Defending Democracy Taskforce which coordinates a whole-of-government response to threats to our democratic processes.

What steps she is taking to maintain the rights of children on Education Otherwise Than At School packages.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.